POLKTON, N.C. — A Polkton man was charged with the shooting death of his son after the younger man died at his father’s house on Jan. 4.
Isaac Braswell Thomas, 64, was charged with second-degree murder in the death of his son, Isaac Peter Thomas, 34, of Albemarle.
Corporal David S. Burroughs arrived at the scene at 1:53 a.m. and found the younger man on the ground near the passenger door of a Hyundai Sonata with a woman kneeling and crying over him, according to an incident report filed by Burroughs and a search warrant completed by Detective B. S. Drake. The woman was the victim’s girlfriend, according to the search warrant.
The woman, a 31 year-old Oakboro resident, told Burroughs that the son, Pete Thomas, had been shot by his father and that the elder man was still inside his mobile home, according to the corporal. When he and Deputy Kelly moved towards the house, Thomas stepped outside.
“Mr. Thomas appeared to be be calm and as if he already knew why we were there,” the report said. “I asked Mr. Thomas if he was the person who shot the gun. Mr. Thomas stated yes.”
The officers then detained the father “for safety reasons” and asked for the location of the gun, the report said. When Isaac Thomas told the officers that it was inside, he also agreed to walk them through the house to find it.
“While going towards the back door of the residence, I observed a small hole in the glass window on the back door that appeared to be from a projectile,” the report said. “When Mr. Thomas opened the back door, I noticed there was a bullet casing laying on the floor near the doorway. Mr. Thomas walked us into the living room and stated that the pistol he shot was laying on the small table in the living room.”
Burroughs said in the report that a a Ruger LCP .380 handgun was on the table and confirmed with Isaac Thomas that it was the weapon used to kill Pete before securing the gun.
Issac Thomas was then put in the back of Kelly’s patrol car while EMS attempted to treat Pete Thomas.
Burroughs said that the victim was deceased when he saw him and had suffered a single gunshot wound to his upper right arm before he and Kelly secured the crime scene, according to the report.
Lt. Brian Tice with the Anson County Sheriff’s Office said that there was no indication of drugs or alcohol affecting either the suspect or the victim.
The victim’s girlfriend said that she and Pete Thomas had gone to visit Isaac Thomas and that the son knocked but the father said to “go away he didn’t want to see him,” according to the search warrant. The woman “advised her boyfriend Pete then punched the door and then the father…fired one shot through the door and it struck Pete,” who screamed and ran towards the car, the search warrant said. Then both the woman and the victim’s father called 911.
Three vehicles and the mobile home were searched. Investigators seized 16 items, including the gun believed to have killed Pete Thomas, a spent shell casing, a Straw-ber-ita malt beverage, a cellphone, the victim’s wallet and shirt, Camel cigarettes and a lighter, $56 in cash, and several additional firearms and ammunition.
Issac Thomas was charged with second-degree murder and booked in the Anson County Jail. He was released that same day on a $100,000 bond and was scheduled to appear in district court on Tuesday.
Issac Thomas was previously convicted of possessing a counterfeit license, driving with a revoked license and driving under the influence in 1981 in Stanly County, according to records with the N.C. Department of Public Safety Division of Adult Correction. He was also convicted of driving while impaired in 1986 in Stanly. His most recent convictions were for driving while impaired and with his license revoked in 1990 in Anson County.
The Anson County Sheriff’s Office is investigating with the assistance of the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation, according to Tice.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.
Reach reporter Imari Scarbrough at 704-994-5471 and follow her on Twitter @ImariScarbrough.